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Saturday 19th May 2012

Top News
Redbull Wednesday shared video of one of its latest sponsored adventures -- five wingsuit skydivers joining up with and maintaining formation with two sailplanes in a dive over Austria. The team flew two aerobatic LET L-13 Blanik sailplanes and just to complicate things the lead flew inverted and one skydiver formed up inbetween the inverted and upright glider. Vdeo after the jump.
May 18, 1:43am UTC

More News
Justice Department attorneys representing the FAA Thursday said the agency made "errors" in enacting pilot fatigue rules that exempt cargo carriers and the issue would be revisited. 
May 18, 11:55pm UTC
On August 27, 2006, Comair Flight 5191 crashed during an attempted takeoff from the wrong runway at Lexington's Blue Grass Airport, killing all 49 aboard, save the co-pilot, James Polehinke, who has now become the subject of a documentary.
May 18, 3:45am UTC
There are a number of "catches," but Virgin Atlantic passengers will soon be able to make cellphone calls on the airline's flights from London to New York, the airline announced this week.
May 16, 11:21pm UTC
Kickstarter, a crowd-funding site, has reconsidered its rejection of a proposal from Synergy Aircraft, and this week said it would allow the project to go forward.
May 16, 7:27pm UTC
Cessna introduced a full-size cabin mockup of it newest, biggest jet, the Citation Longitude, at EBACE in Geneva on Monday morning.
May 14, 5:51am UTC
Eclipse Aerospace and Sikorsky subsidiary PZL Mielec have signed a deal that will see the major airframe components of the new Eclipse 550 built at the PZL plant in Poland.
May 15, 9:34pm UTC
The FAA on Monday released some revisions to its rules governing the use of unmanned aircraft systems in the National Airspace System.
May 15, 2:49pm UTC
 
The EAA does not want its name associated with the event that has in the past been publicized as the EAA AirVenture Cup Race, but organizers Friday announced the race will go on.
May 18, 10:22pm UTC
Troubled by decreasing volume in a flat aviation economy, Mattituck Services, one of the northeast's longest-established engine shops, will close at the end of May, according to Continental Motors.
May 17, 10:05am UTC
Concerns over the system that delivers oxygen to pilots of the F-22 Tuesday led Defense Secretary Leon Panetta to set flight limits for the fighter jet and add safety measures. The jets must now be flown "within proximity of potential landing locations."
May 16, 11:12pm UTC
This Saturday, during the third annual International Learn To Fly Day, airports around the world are hosting events and pilots are offering to take neighbors and friends up for a free introductory flight.
May 16, 8:17pm UTC
The FAA will accept comments until June 8, 2012 on revised rules for what used to be called the Block Aircraft Registration Request program, which allows aircraft owners to prevent public access to information tied to their aircraft N-number.
May 15, 10:07pm UTC
Evelyn Bryan Johnson, who logged 57,635.4 hours in the air -- more than six years -- during her long flying career, died last week at age 102.
May 15, 9:31pm UTC
Bombardier introduced two new aircraft, the Learjet 70 and 75, at the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition in Geneva on Monday morning.
May 14, 6:12pm UTC

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Features & Columns
Returning with his family to Ohio, Richard Taylor gets back into KC-97s in the Ohio Air National Guard ... this time the KC-97L, with two jet engines added to the four piston engines. After losing a major client in his non-aviation job, Richard fortuitously finds an opening as a faculty member in the Department of Aviation at Ohio State University. Click here to read the 13th chapter.
Brainteasers Where would you go on a perfect flying vacation, and how would you get there?

Take the quiz.
 
Our latest winning photo comes from Marc Martin of Annville, PA. Click here for the rest of this week's submissions.
Our latest winning photo comes from Josh Kneer & Tony Ginn of Rosamond, CA. Click here for the rest of this week's submissions.
Our latest winning photo comes from Ben & Scott Hobson of Olathe, KS. Click here for the rest of this week's submissions.
Our latest winning photo comes from Leslie Schroeppel of Washington, DC. Click here for the rest of this week's submissions.

FULL INDEX OF FEATURES Browse Our Features Archive
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Podcasts and Video
podcasts sponsored by Bose Corporation
Cessna introduced its newest, biggest jet, the Citation Longitude, at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) this week. AVweb's Mary Grady spoke with Brad Thress, Cessna's senior vice president for business jets, from the show floor in Geneva to learn more details about the design and some of the choices that were made.
Teal Group analyst Richard Aboulafia offers his thoughts on the show, Hawker Beechcraft's many options and how Cessna and Embraer are matching up. He spoke with AVweb's Russ Niles.
AVweb speaks to OpenAirplane's Rod Rakic for more details about his company's plan to make renting aircraft easier and more affordable for pilots — and more profitable for aircraft owners.
For 15 years, John Sheehan has marshaled the combined might of 69 national pilot organizations as the secretary general of the International Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. On May 1, he retired and spoke with AVweb's Russ Niles about the successes in those 15 years and the challenges ahead.
The CAFE Foundation, which works to advance the technology of efficient flight, held its annual electric aircraft symposium over the weekend, in Santa Rosa, California. AVweb's Mary Grady spoke with CAFE President Brien Seeley for a recap of the event's highlights.
 
On the first day of the European Business Aviation Convention and Expo in Geneva, Switzerland, Cessna Aircraft announced its largest jet yet — a new version of the Citation dubbed "Longitude."
Daimler-Benz makes about 1,500 OM640 diesel engines a day, and Austro diverts about 15 minutes worth of production to its factory in Wiener Neustadt, Austria, where it forms the core of the AE300 aerodiesel. In this video, Austro's Peter Lietz takes us through how the company turns a car engine into an airplane engine.
The story of William Rankin's ejection at 47,000 feet and 500 knots is legendary, not only because the fall took him 40 minutes, but also because he lived to talk about it. There are other and more recent cases of people who have been drawn into thunderstorms under canopy and not every one ends in survival.

FULL INDEX OF PODCASTS Find All Podcasts Of Interest

AVwebBiz: AVweb's Business Aviation Newsletter
Delivered every Wednesday morning, AVwebBiz focuses on the companies, the products and the industry leaders that make headlines in the business aviation industry, making it a must-read.

Add AVwebBiz to your free subscriptions today by clicking here and choosing "Update E-mail Subscriptions."
Jan 1, 10:14pm UTC

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Who's Where
Graham Horne
Graham Horne has been named Cirrus's regional director for Southeast Asia and Australia. Horne was previously the company's U.K. sales director.

May 16, 4:37am UTC

FULL INDEX OF WHO'S WHERE STORIES Find Past Who's Where Stories Of Interest

VIDEO


Cessna Unveils Largest Jet Yet, the Longitude

No video? Direct link here.
AVweb's Austro Engine Factory Tour

No video? Direct link here.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

How do you feel about Virgin's decision to allow limited cell phone calls on trans-Atlantic flights?

Virgin Atlantic will allow six cell phone calls at a time on its London-New York flights. Is that a plus or minus for you?


Share your Opinion »

PILOT RESOURCES

FBO OF THE WEEK

AVweb's latest "FBO of the Week" is Maverick Air Center at Sioux Falls Regional Air Center (FSB) in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

AVweb reader Lynn Erickson recommended the FBO:

My wife and I were traveling from Madison, Wisconsin to Sioux Falls for our godson's confirmation and had decided on Maverick because of the rental car avialablility. The weather was a challenge, and after dodging around a line of storms and landing ahead of another, we were greeted by a very accomodating, experienced line crew who hustled our 182 into their brand-new hangar. The entire facility is new, with obvious attention to what makes a full-service FBO without the pretense. The people working there are an outstanding compliment to the surroundings. Bruce and his crew kept our airplane in for two nights, charged us for one, and gave us a very good price on fuel. This is definitely a GA-of-all-sizes-friendly stop.

Keep those nominations coming. For complete contest rules, click here.

AVweb is actively seeking out the best FBOs in the country and another one, submitted by you, will be spotlighted here next Monday!

Nominate an FBO »

SHORT FINAL...

Flying an Army OH58 in the early '80s, we determined that we would not have the fuel to make our planned destination. Passing Kessler Air Force Base, we called the tower for landing instructions.

Kessler Tower:
"Do you have PPR?" [PPR = "prior permission"]

OH58 (not knowing what "PPR" stood for) :
"No. [pause] All we have is a transponder and an ADF."

Kessler Tower:
"Clear to land."

Mike Friel
via e-mail

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